Hair ornaments have long been in use, especially by people having long hair. Perhaps the most elementary form of hair ornament is the annular band that is used to collect a bundle of hair together to create the appearance of the tail of a pony. Many embellishments of the annular band have been created, but such embellishments are merely decorative items that are added to the band itself.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,099,271 to Dublier shows a connector element for an elastic band for holding a ponytail. As such, it is a representative patent of the large body of art disclosing such elements, including, e.g. Ryder 258,128, Winters, U.S. Pat. No. 2,488,954 and U.S. Pat. No. 2,832,358 to Chambers.
Cox U.S. Pat. No. 4,197,670, on the other hand, is of interest for its disclosure of a doll having arms equipped with Velcro brand adherent G.B. 2,013,508 additionally discloses stick-on face elements.
Schiavo U.S. Pat. No. 4,729,751, Chemarin U.S. Pat. No. 3,789,547, Nachbar U.S. Pat. No. 3,316,669, Piers, Jr. U.S. Pat. No. 3,000,384, Rabinowitz U.S. Pat. No. 2,847,016,Goodman U.S. Pat. No. 3,842,849 and Mercorella U.S. Pat. No. 3,542,041 are likewise of interest for their disclosures of Velcro brand adherent material or the like on doll arms, etc., including material or structure for holding ponytails and the like.
Journette U.S. Pat. No. 2,323,522 shows a flat doll figure having a natural hair holding feature.
Sterling U.S. Pat. No. 1,007,926, Whetzel U.S. Pat. No. 3,889,414 and Noble U.S. Pat. No. 4,715,842 show hairholders or dividers for dolls or human hair.
Rogers U.S. Pat. No. 1,409,411 combines a terminal connector element in the form of a loop for a doll having arm-like members that are adapted to bend into holders for any object. Somewhat similar holders are disclosed in Goldman D192,040, Perkitny U.S. Pat. No. 4,685,893, Cervantes D228,559 and Jackson D180,597. As such, these patents are representative samples of the large body of art disclosing such combinations.
None of the ponytail holders or general hairholders of the prior art are structured so that the hair of the wearer is made an integral part of the ornament.